It's a Mayor-y Christmas

This year’s annual Christmas bus to promote the Lord Mayor of Canterbury’s Christmas Gift Fund was unveiled at the council offices on Tuesday. The charity helps people living in the Canterbury community who may be elderly, vulnerable or facing particular hardship.
The bus was launched by the Lord Mayor of Canterbury councillor Rosemary Doyle alongside Stagecoach’s commercial director Matthew Arnold. Cllr Doyle said “We’re really grateful to Stagecoach for continuing to help us promote the Lord Mayor of Canterbury’s Christmas Gift Fund and in particular the Open Air Carols in Rose Square on Christmas Eve with the Archbishop of Canterbury.”

Last year, an enormous crowd, estimated to be over 4,000 strong attended the event which raised a record amount of £5,555 on the night. The annual family occasion is a traditional part of Christmas in Canterbury and has been organised each year since 1952 by the local charity, The Lord Mayor of Canterbury’s Christmas Gift Fund. Cllr Doyle added “The charity is dedicated to making the Christmas season happier for some people living in the Canterbury area and a major part of our activity in the weeks up to Christmas is in raising funds to purchase the parcels and to facilitate deliveries, with the unfailing help of our volunteer supporters. People get to know about the Lord Mayor of Canterbury's Christmas Gift Fund only at Christmas time, and the Christmas Eve Carols event is really the icing on the cake.”

This year’s Open Air Carols will be sung in Rose Square, Canterbury on Christmas Eve from 6.15pm with singing led by St Stephen’s Church Choir from the Primark balcony and music from the Salvation Army Band.

The Christmas bus can be seen on local Canterbury city bus routes until the end of the year.